Winter Wonderland, Part I

Today is the final day of Ice Week, and before this snowstravaganza all melts away, I wanted to share some wintry magic with all of you. The following spells come from an article I originally wrote for Open Gaming Monthly, entitled “Winter Wonderland.” Enjoy.

Winter is a pretty magical time of year, and can be one of the most awe-inspiring seasons. The way that a night’s worth of snow can seemingly transform the entire world when one wakes up in the morning is nothing short of mystical. A snow-covered world, at least from the point of view of a modern suburbanite, who can retreat to the warmth of his home any time he likes, is a softer, brighter, friendlier place than a world without snow.

For my part, though, whenever I look at RPG supplements that are “winter” themed, they somehow always manage to feel a lot less like winter and a lot more like elemental cold. Polar ray and ice storm are certainly more fitting for winter or arctic climes than the summer, sure, but they feel like a decidedly unnatural cold. Winter’s a perfectly natural thing. It happens every year. Somehow, otherworldly cold just doesn’t seem right to describe this perfectly-worldly season.

So, I decided to try to make some magic that would in some way capture the wonder, mystery, beauty, and fragility of this season, instead of just slapping a bunch of cold damage on and calling it a day. I’ll admit that a few of these spells may seem a bit silly on the surface, but don’t let the names of spells like animate snowman army or mage’s snowball storm fool you: these spells only look light-hearted, and, if used correctly, will be a worthy addition to any wizard’s spellbook.

Temperature Rules

Several of the spells in this article require a new type of component, referred to as a temperature component (this is denoted by a “T” in the components section). Such spells can only be cast if the temperature in the area in which they are cast meets certain requirements. Additionally, several of the spells in this article reference temperature in their effect.

Temperature in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game sometimes has very specific effects, but is handled in separate sections (“standard” temperatures are covered under weather, and are in poorly-defined and overlapping categories, while “extreme” temperatures are covered under environmental rules, and are somewhat better defined). The following section combines these rules into a single and easy to use scale, and makes a couple of minor adjustments to the thresholds of certain temperature categories in order to make these two groups of temperatures compatible.

Damage from Extreme Temperatures: Extreme heat and cold deal nonlethal damage to the victim. A character cannot recover from the damage dealt by a hot or cold environment until she is removed from that environment and returns to a normal temperature. Once a character has taken an amount of nonlethal damage equal to her total hit points, any further damage from a hot or cold environment is lethal damage.

Temperature Categories

Temperature can be divided into several categories, based on the amount of heat involved. These categories range from extreme cold to extreme heat. The following table summarizes the various temperature categories.

Extreme Cold (-21° or below): Extreme cold deals 1d6 points of lethal damage per minute (no save). In addition, a character must make a Fortitude save (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or take 1d4 points of nonlethal damage.

Severe Cold (-1° to -20°): In conditions of severe cold, an unprotected character must make a Fortitude save once every 10 minutes (DC 15, +1 per previous check), taking 1d6 points of nonlethal damage on each failed save. A character who has the Survival skill may receive a bonus on this saving throw and might be able to apply this bonus to other characters as well. Characters wearing a cold weather outfit only need check once per hour for cold and exposure damage. In conditions of severe cold or colder, a character who takes any nonlethal damage from cold or exposure is beset by frostbite or hypothermia (treat her as fatigued). These penalties end when the character recovers the nonlethal damage she took from the cold and exposure.

Cold (0° to 40°): An unprotected character in cold weather must make a Fortitude save each hour (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage. A character who has the Survival skill may receive a bonus on this saving throw and might be able to apply this bonus to other characters as well (see the skill description).

Moderate (41° to 60°): While uncomfortable for many humanoids, there are no adverse effects caused by exposure to this temperature. Snow and ice exposed to moderate or warmer temperatures begin to melt.

Warm (61° to 85°): There are no adverse effects caused by exposure to this temperature.

Hot (86° to 110°): A character in hot conditions must make a Fortitude saving throw each hour (DC 15, +1 for each previous check) or take 1d4 points of nonlethal damage. Characters wearing heavy clothing or armor of any sort take a –4 penalty on their saves. A character with the Survival skill may receive a bonus on this saving throw and might be able to apply this bonus to other characters as well (see the skill description). Characters reduced to unconsciousness begin taking lethal damage (1d4 points per hour).

Severe Heat (111° to 140°): In severe heat, a character must make a Fortitude save once every 10 minutes (DC 15, +1 for each previous check) or take 1d4 points of nonlethal damage. Characters wearing heavy clothing or armor of any sort take a –4 penalty on their saves. A character with the Survival skill may receive a bonus on this saving throw and might be able to apply this bonus to other characters as well (see the Survival skill in Using Skills). Characters reduced to unconsciousness begin taking lethal damage (1d4 points per each 10-minute period). In severe heat or hotter conditions, a character who takes any nonlethal damage from heat exposure suffers from heatstroke and is fatigued. These penalties end when the character recovers from the nonlethal damage she took from the heat.

Extreme Heat (141° or above): Extreme heat deals lethal damage. Breathing air in these temperatures deals 1d6 points of fire damage per minute (no save). In addition, a character must make a Fortitude save every 5 minutes (DC 15, +1 per previous check) or take 1d4 points of nonlethal damage. Those wearing heavy clothing or any sort of armor take a –4 penalty on their saves.

Snow Rules

Several of the spells in this article reference snowballs and snowmen, which are not found in most Pathfinder sourcebooks. Rather than leave you wondering what sort of action it is to build a snowman or what the normal effect is when hit in the face with a snowball, use the following optional rules that detail the creation and practical effects of these winter wonderland staples.

Snowballs: In order to make a snowball, there must be enough snow on the ground and readily available (generally, this requires at least one inch of snow). A snowball can be made and thrown as a single full-round action that provokes attacks of opportunity. Alternatively, a snowball can be made and not thrown as a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunity, and a character can throw a snowball he has on hand as a normal attack.

An average snowball has a range increment of 15 feet. Hitting a character with a snowball requires a ranged touch attack, but, with normal snowballs, this has no effect. Successfully hitting a character’s face, or an exposed part of their body with a snowball requires a ranged attack against their full AC. A creature hit in this way must succeed on a Fortitude save (DC 10) or be dazzled for 1 round and suffer 1 point of cold damage. Creatures that are immune or resistant to cold damage are not dazzled in this way, even if they fail their saving throw. Unlike most thrown weapons, the attacker’s Strength modifier is not added to the damage roll.

Snowmen: In order to make a snowman, there must be enough snow on the ground and readily available (generally, this requires at least three inches of snow). Building a crude and simple snowman takes 1 minute. With a successful Craft (sculptures) check (DC 15), the snowman can be made with more painstaking detail. Crafting actual lifelike statues out of snow is much more difficult (DC 25).

As a terrain feature, a snowman occupies a single 5-ft. square. A creature occupying the same square as a snowman gains partial cover, which grants a +2 bonus to AC and a +1 bonus on Reflex saves. The presence of a snowman doesn’t otherwise affect a creature’s fighting space, because it is assumed that the creature is using the snowman to its advantage when it can.

A snowman can be attacked or pushed over in order to destroy it (preventing it from being used to gain cover). A snowman has an AC of 5, 3 hit points, a CMD of 5, and is immune to cold and vulnerable to fire. Reducing a snowman to 0 hit points, or successfully making a bull rush, overrun, push, or trip combat maneuver against it destroys it.

New Spells

The following spells are presented in alphabetical order. Spells marked with a “T” in their components can only be cast in areas of a certain temperature, as indicated in the spell’s description. If the temperature in the area changes during the spell’s duration, and no longer falls under the category required by the spell, then the spell immediately ends. Similarly, in the case of spells cast on an object or creature, if that object or creature moves to an area that is a different temperature that does not fall under the category required by the spell, the spell ends.

With a word, you supernaturally heat or chill the air around you. You can increase or decrease the temperature in the affected area by any amount desired, up to a maximum change equal to 20° + 2° per caster level (to a maximum of 60° at 20th level).

The sudden change in temperature can be very disorienting, and if this spell is used to change the temperature from one temperature category to another, then any creature other than you that is in the affected area when the spell is cast, or enters the affected area while the spell is in effect must succeed on a Fortitude save or be dazzled for 1d4 rounds. Creatures with resistance to fire damage are immune to this effect if you raise the temperature, and creatures with resistance to cold damage are immune to this effect if you lower the temperature.

In addition to the above affects, creatures in the affected area are subject to the normal effects of the temperature category that the area is change to.

You command the temperature in the surrounding area, bending the natural world to your whims. Select a single temperature category (extreme cold, severe cold, cold, moderate, warm, hot, severe heat, or extreme heat): you change the temperature to match that temperature category in an area centered on the spot touched. The radius of the spell’s area is a number of miles equal to 1 per 4 caster levels you possess (so a 20th-level caster would affect everything in a 5-mile-radius area).

While this spell sets the natural temperature in the affected area to a certain point, it does not prevent other phenomenon in the area from adjusting the temperature. A fire still burns, and can still be used to warm a home and protect a character from the cold, for example. Magical attempts to alter the temperature in the affected area (such as with the alter temperature or control weather spells) fail unless the caster succeeds on a caster level check (DC 11 + your caster level).

The duration of the spell depends on the temperature that you selected, as indicated on the table below.

A gleaming spark emerges from the end of your finger and into the target, filling it with life and allowing it to act, albeit for a short time. The target need not actually be a “snowman” in the strictest sense of the word: rather, the spell can target any object that was deliberately made from packed snow by a sentient creature, which is roughly Medium-sized. Objects made of ice, or other materials cannot be affected by the spell, regardless of their shape, and man-made snow objects that do not in any way resemble humanoids (including snow castles, snow dogs, and so on) can be animated without difficulty, provided they are the right size.

The animated snowman has an AC equal to 10 + your primary spellcasting ability score modifier (Intelligence for wizards, Charisma for sorcerers, etc.), and 3 hit points. It has a movement speed of 5 feet, and cannot run. The animated snowman can make a single slam attack with an attack bonus equal to 1 + your primary spellcasting ability score modifier (1d8 damage on a successful hit, half of which is cold damage and half of which is nonlethal damage). It is immune to cold damage, but is vulnerable to fire damage.

The animated snowman cannot speak, but understands your commands and obeys them to the best of its ability. When standing still, the animated snowman does not appear to be alive, and creatures that do not already know its true nature must succeed on a Perception check (DC 20) to notice that it is alive.

At the end of the spell’s duration, the animated snowman returns to normal. If the animated snowman is reduced to 0 hit points, it collapses into a pile of snow, and the spell immediately ends.

As animate snowman, except that it affects up to three snowmen per caster level, and you need not touch the snowmen to animate them. Unless you specifically choose otherwise, the spell simply animates the all snowmen in range, beginning with the snowmen nearest to you, and continuing until it has animated the maximum possible amount of snowmen that it can, or until it has animated all snowmen within the spell’s range.

Additionally, unlike animate snowman, you no longer need to verbally command the animated snowmen. Instead, they obey your mental commands, as long as they are within range of you. Snowmen that move outside of range remain animated and continue the last task that you gave them, but can no longer receive your mental commands.

At your command, furious gales of chilling wind appear, bearing with them a blanket of pale white snow. The affected area is filled with a terrible blizzard, which has a number of effects. First, the wind speed in the area is increased to windstorm (unprotected flames are automatically extinguished, there is a 75% chance that protected flames are extinguished, normal ranged attacks are impossible, ranged attacks with siege weapons suffer a -4 penalty, Perception checks suffer a -4 penalty, -8 instead if they rely on sound).

Additionally, snow fills the air and stings the eyes, dramatically reducing vision in the affected area. All vision, including darkvision is obscured beyond 5 feet. A creature within 5 feet has concealment (20% miss chance). Creatures further away have total concealment (50% miss chance, and the attacker can’t use sight to locate the target). The snow also quickly piles on the ground in the affected area: after 1d4 rounds, the affected area is blanketed in snow, and each square in the affected area costs 2 squares of movement to enter. After an additional 1d4 rounds, the affected area is covered in deep snow, and each square in the affected area costs 4 squares of movement to enter.

Finally, the biting winds are supernaturally cold, and each creature that enters or begins its turn in the affected area suffers 3d6 points of cold damage. A successful Fortitude save halves this damage.

Enjoying these wintery spells so far? I couldn’t quite fit them all in today’s article, so be sure to tune in next week for part two, when I will post the remainder of the spells.